REUTERS/Brendan McDermid/File photo Acquire Licensing RightsOct 28 (Reuters) - U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said on Saturday he was surprised by Israel's escalation of the bombardments in Gaza, and repeated a call for an immediate humanitarian ceasefire for the delivery of aid. "Regrettably, instead of the pause, I was surprised by an unprecedented escalation of the bombardments and their devastating impacts, undermining the referred humanitarian objectives," he said. Guterres' comments follow Israel's escalation of the weeks-long reprisal for the Oct. 7 attack by Palestinian militant group Hamas which killed 1,400 Israelis. Aid agencies say a humanitarian catastrophe is unfolding for Gaza's 2.3 million people who are under a total Israeli blockade. Health authorities in the Hamas-run enclave said 7,650 Palestinians, also mostly civilians, have been killed since Israel's bombardment began.

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Persons: Antonio Guterres, Brendan McDermid, Guterres, Adhanom Ghebreyesus, Cross, Michelle Nichols, Ismail Shakil, Moira Warburton, Diane Craft Organizations: United Nations, Security, United Nations Headquarters, REUTERS, Palestinian, Health, Crescent, UN, World Health Organisation, WHO, International Committees, Thomson Locations: Gaza, New York City, U.S, Israel, Palestine